[Yonhap Photo]
Officials in Gangdong District, which is one of Seoul's 25 districts, were put on anti-virus alert on Wednesday, taking massive preventive measures against COVID-19, which infected a curate at Myungsung Presbyterian Church with a membership of more than 80,000 as well as a daughter of his friend staying at his house.
The church and nearby areas have been disinfected, with an on-site virus test center set up to examine the first group of 364 people. Before being sent to an isolation ward on Tuesday, the curate had been involved in missionary activities, including a Sunday service.
The curate was suspected of becoming infected with the virus during his visit on February 14 to a funeral in the southeastern county of Cheongdo, which has been designated a special management zone for a rapid increase in the number of confirmed cases, along with the nearby city of Daegu.
Myungsung is one of South Korea's 100 mega-churches with a membership of more than 10,000. The church has been at the center of controversy since its founder, Rev. Kim Sam-hwan, named his eldest son, Kim Ha-na, to succeed him in 2017, triggering criticism of hereditary leadership in Protestant churches.
Many churches have followed government recommendations to suspend services and go online, but some mega-churches such as Yoido Full Gospel Church affiliated with the Assemblies of God are still reluctant to follow suit.
Yoido Full Gospel Church is South Korea's largest Pentecostal Christian congregation with a membership of 560,000. The church's main building in Seoul is capable of seating 12,000 people and congregants can watch events in the main church on telescreens at nearby buildings.
For the first time in 236 years' history, the Roman Catholic Church with 5.8 million followers in South Korea suspended Mass at all 16 dioceses.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
